IR Film in Cambo 6x12 or Horseman 6x12 back?

I'd like to give panoramic IR a shot. I have access to a Cambo 6x12 back, and a Horseman 6x12 back. Instructions for the Cambo back say that it's not suitable for IR film, and I was told the same would be true of the Horseman back, even though it winds out way less leader in loading than the Cambo.

So, are these statements true in regards to the IR film we have now? I'm sitting on a couple rolls of Ilford and Rollei, and wondering about buying some Efke 820 and 820 AURA. I also have a roll of old Konica 750nm from 1995.

What do I need to know? Efke reports problems in plastic cameras, but is the Cambo back made of the same plastic as, say, a Holga? If I load in complete darkness, will that negate any fogging? Does the Efke AURA really need to be loaded in darkness anyway? (MACO says no, some reviews say yes.) Is the leader the same length as other 120 films? I've found or been given a lot of information from different sources, but nothing that conclusively answers the question: Can I put today's IR film in a Cambo or Horseman 6x12 back? I have a limited budget and don't want to waste a roll of film to find out that the answer is 'no.'

Does anybody have any experience with IR film in these backs? Any advice would be appreciated.

I would recommend going with roll film, especially if you are new to the IR film. Reason is that you will want to bracket.. a lot. At least until you get to know how each film behaves and what sort of filtering is optimal for the look you want. In my own work with various IR films, I've found it prudent to shoot at least two of everything. For subjects I really like, I typically do multiples of each exposure and bracket +2 on top of that.... which gets to be costly.

With sheet film, instead of bracketing the exposure, what I do is bracket development. Meaning that I develop one, check it out, and adjust the dev of the next one accordingly. But that leaves no spare negs, so I am usually tempted to shoot at least 3 LF frames of the same subject.

You have to do your own math, of course.

If you have any doubts about whether a back is good for IR, just surround it with foil or a metallic dark-cloth (normal cotton won't work). My own experience is that the problems are usually with the bellows, not the backs. Just keep the back out of direct light and load/unload in subdued light and you should be okay. Most of the concerns date back to HIE, which was far more problematic than our current crop of IR films.

P.S. I did run some Rollei IR through a horseman 612 back some years ago and don't remember any problems.

Last edited by keithwms; 02-21-2012 at 11:19 AM. Click to view previous post history.

I tried Konica IR in a Calumet 6x12 and indeed it's not good. The plastic darkslide leaked IR just enough to be a problem and the light seal at the hinge was really bad. If you have one you can make a metal darkslide for it and put aluminum tape over the hinge to make it work.

do a test with your camera as well to make sure the bellows are ir proof. pull the dark slide half way and rotate the camera around outside in the sun for a minute, process the film and you'll know instantly. Also, lots of film holders leak from the top (one side or the other) where you pull the dark slide.

Thanks very much for all the info and pointers, folks. The camera is a Cambo Wide DS, so no bellows to deal with, but it definitely looks like I'll have to suck it up and test a roll in the Cambo back with aluminum over it. The dark slide is plastic, which doesn't bode well. Sounds like the Horseman back is a better bet. Will comment with the results when I actually get around to trying this.